Christopher Bittola and Danna Bittola, Individually and on behalf of their minor child, Alexander Bittola v. Nekita Harmon, Old Republic Insurance Company, Gelco Corporation and 3M Company

STATE OF LOUISIANA

COURT OF APPEAL, FIRST CIRCUIT

CHRISTOPHER BITTOLA AND NO. 2022 CW 0662

DANNA BITTOLA, INDIVIDUALLY

AND ON BEHALF OF THEIR MINOR

CHILD, ALEXANDER BITTOLA

VERSUS

NEKITA HARMON, OLD REPUBLIC SEPTEMBER 12, 2022 INSURANCE COMPANY, GELCO

CORPORATION AND 3M COMPANY

In Re: Christopher Bittola, applying for supervisory writs, 22nd Judicial District Court, Parish of St. Tammany, No. 2018-10797.

BEFORE : WELCH, THERIOT, AND LANIER, JJ.

WRIT GRANTED. The district court’s May 16, 2022 judgment denying the “Motion in Limine Regarding the Testimony of Wilson C. Hayes, Ph.D.” filed by Plaintiff, Christopher Bittola, is reversed. Dr. Hayes did not interview the plaintiffs; did not know the plaintiffs’ body positions at the time of the accident; did not inspect the actual vehicles involved in the collision; did not speak to a damage appraiser; and calculated the impact of the collision on the plaintiffs’ bodies based in part on photographs, vehicle repair estimates, and descriptions of the accident by the parties. While he did refer to photographs of the plaintiffs’ vehicle, he did not have any photographs of the defendants’ vehicle. Dr. Hayes also failed to review the deposition testimony of any of the doctors who treated or examined the plaintiffs. As a result, Dr. Hayes admitted that he made numerous assumptions to complete his calculations supporting his conclusion that the injuries the plaintiffs allegedly sustained were unlikely given the force of impact of the collision. Therefore, we find that the majority of Dr. Hayes’s testimony is more prejudicial than probative, as it could lead the jury to reach improper conclusions of fact based on these assumptions. See Godchaux v. Peerless Ins. Co., 2013- 1083 (La. App. 3d Cir. 6/4/14), 140 So.3d 817, 824-25, writ denied, 2014-1411 (La. 10/3/14), 149 So.3d 801. For these reasons, we find the district court abused its discretion in denying the motion in limine. Accordingly, the motion in limine filed by Christopher Bittola is granted, and we hereby exclude Dr. Hayes’s testimony at trial.

JEW

WIL

Theriot, J., concurs. See Blair v. Coney, 2019-00795 (La. 4/3/20), 340 So.3d 775.

COURT OF APPEAL, FIRST CIRCUIT

G. Sw) /

DEPUTY CLERK OF COURT

FOR THE COURT